Really, this story wasn't even planned until someone suggested a Harry Potter AU with Michael. And after some thinking, I figured it was a great idea. Now we have over 20,000 words of Michael in the Harry Potter universe.

It was originally planned for 7 chapters but Sixth Year turned out to be a monster and we now have 8 planned.

In any case, I'm really hoping that you guys enjoy this. Michael isn't exactly a character I have a lot of experience in writing, and he's been through a lot since we've seen him on the show.

For readers just checking out the SPN and Harry Potter crossover tag, this is part of a series that you can find on my profile; I have it all organized into chronological order. This one is Part 14 in the series, and there are spoilers for the story known as The Last Archangel: Redemption, so if you haven't read that, I'd recommend reading it first. Or if you don't mind spoilers and just want a Michael-centric story, keep on reading!

EDIT 03/16/2019: There have been some minor edits made to this chapter and the rest of the story.

Summary: He just wanted to rest. But he was alive now, and he had no idea why. He had no purpose, no path to take. His brother had told him they had free will, the choice to do what they wished. But he was aimless. Who was he, if not Michael?

Enochian is spoken like this.

First Year

Wayne Hopkins was a quiet, dark-skinned, unassuming boy with a mother who was a witch and a father who was a Muggle. His parents, Eleanor and Alan, had met at a bar twelve years ago and hit it off, his mother revealing her magic to his father about two months into them dating. His father had taken it remarkably well and hadn't even blinked when his son had also begun exhibiting accidental magic several months after being born. This was largely due to the troubles the couple had while trying to conceive – Wayne's mother was forever referring to him fondly as her little miracle.

Wayne's mother worked comfortably as a private med-witch, and his father had a safe job as the head of a well-established grocery store in their town.

By the time Wayne was on his way to turning eleven, it was clear that he would be heading to Hogwarts. His mother had been a Ravenclaw in her time, during which He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had inflicted his reign of terror on Magical England. Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, had been born in 1991, a month before Wayne, who quite happily claimed a very, very late August birthday and slid into the same year as the legendary vanquisher of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

Wayne was quite excited to go to Hogwarts and explore his magical abilities. As the only child of the Hopkins, loneliness had been one of Wayne's friends, and he had always wanted others to spend time with and talk to. They lived in a small town that had a small magical community and no children his age, so Hogwarts would be his opportunity to make friends.

"Be safe," his mother told him on the platform of nine and three-quarters, kissing his cheek. She was an average-sized woman with tan-colored skin and light eyes. "It doesn't matter what house you're sorted into, as long as you're happy."

Wayne nodded, smiling distractingly as Dane, his new kneazle/cat familiar meowed angrily in his cage. "I will, Mum."

"I still can't believe this is hidden here," his father said, a tall, dark-skinned man with wire-frame glasses. "And no one ever notices?"

"No," his mother said fondly, rustling Wayne's tousled black hair once before letting her hand drop. "The train's departing soon. Keep in touch, all right?"

"Yes, Mum," Wayne said, smiling at her. "I'll let you know which house I've been sorted in."

"I do like purple," his father mused.

"That's not a color, I'm afraid," his mother said, "though Dumbledore's likely to wear something similar, I think."

Keeping a tight grip on Dane's cage, Wayne gave his parents one last hug before boarding the train. It didn't take him long to find an empty carriage, as his mum had made sure to arrive early enough that they wouldn't have to worry about being pressed for time.

Letting Dane out of his cage, all too amused at the disgusted flick of the tail the kneazle mixture gave him, Wayne sat next to the window and struggled to keep his excitement down, focusing on the noise and bustle of the station.

It was enough to drown out the silence in his head that had been his lifelong companion.

Hogwarts was magnificent. That was just about all Wayne could register as the boats all the first years were sitting in began to make their way across the lake. He'd heard stories from his mum about the great squid that lived in its waters, but there was no sign of it at the moment.

In his boat were Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, and Goyle. He knew the reputation of the three boys' families, but he hadn't felt comfortable enough to tell them no when they came into his carriage on the train halfway through the ride. It ended up being a relatively good idea, as Malfoy had been all too happy to tell Wayne the dirty details about Harry Potter and the blood traitors he was being chummy with.

Malfoy hadn't seemed too bothered with Wayne's half-blood status – not that he'd even asked considering the Hopkins family wasn't ever in the limelight. Wayne had left it at "I'm Wayne Hopkins" and let Malfoy make all the assumptions he wanted.

He wouldn't likely be in the same house as Malfoy anyway. Malfoy was a shoe-in for Slytherin, and Wayne…wasn't. His mom had debated between Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw numerous times, with his father suggesting Gryffindor simply because his favorite colors were red and gold.

Wayne didn't really have a preference, since he'd be fine regardless of what house the Hat sorted him into.

Professor McGonagall was just as stern as his mother had warned him she would be, but it was in that stern, sort of motherly way.

Then came the Great Hall, and Wayne was stunned. He heard a girl whisper something about the ceiling being charmed to look like the outside sky, but all he could think about was how amazing it was with the candles and other students chatting.

It was like coming home, the sound of voices in the background filling a hole that he'd lived with all his life. He missed it when McGonagall called for silence and announced how the Sorting would be done.

Wayne swallowed nervously, shifting his weight from leg to leg as he waited for his name to be called.

When it was, with a brisk "Hopkins, Wayne," Wayne wiped his sweaty hands on his robes and sat down on the chair, letting the Hat come down over his eyes.

He startled upon hearing the Hat's voice in his head, heart skipping a beat. No preference, I see?

No, Wayne thought back.

You have an intelligent mind, Mr. Hopkins. And bravery. But you're also loyal. Where to put you?

What you think is best.

Is that so? Then…better be… The sound of the Hat's voice screaming "HUFFLEPUFF" to the rest of the Hall had Wayne jerking in his seat, and then McGonagall took the Hat away and Wayne was staggering to the cheering Hufflepuff table, smiling at the other beaming faces.

The rest of the Sorting passed in a sort of blur, except for the announcement of Harry Potter and the way the nervous looking boy was sorted after several anticipatory minutes into Gryffindor to much acclaim.

"Like there was any doubt," a boy who'd introduced himself as Ernie Macmillan said, applauding just as wildly as the rest of the Hall save for Slytherin.

Wayne hummed in acknowledgement, one eye on the empty plates. The Sorting was almost over…

The food was just as good as his mother had always described it, and by the end of it Wayne was only too happy to be shown to the dormitory and where he would be sleeping with the rest of the first years.

Sleep came easily, even with the excitement that classes would start the next day.

It didn't even startle Wayne that his mind thought there should be singing before he fell asleep.

The first week of classes was hectic, and Wayne and his new friends/dorm mates wondered around in circles several times before finding the right classrooms. The moving staircases didn't really help either as Zacharias was too fond of grumbling.

Wayne liked Ernie and Justin best, as the two were quiet and friendly. Zacharias was rather snobby and full of himself, going so far as to critique Wayne's writing skills over his shoulder. Wayne had the rather odd sensation of wanting to punch him. Or stab him.

When the weekend dawned, bright and sunny and perfect for spending outdoors, they did so. They didn't take their homework, wanting to enjoy the sunshine and shade by the lake. Thankfully Zacharias didn't come, too busy snoring away in his bed.

"It's only going to get harder, you know," Ernie said, lying several feet away from Wayne. "We're just firsties."

"They'll build us up to it," Wayne said, glancing back at the castle. There was something pulling at him, though he didn't know what.

"Doubtlessly," Justin agreed, head buried in his arms. "Anyone find the kitchens yet? People keep saying they're grand, if you know where they are."

"We've only been here a week," Ernie said. "I expect we'll find them soon enough."

"My mum didn't," Wayne said, shaking his head as he struggled to push away that pull. It was getting bloody annoying.

"Some people don't," Ernie agreed. "I know my parents didn't."

They fell into a sleepy silence that was only broken when Justin popped up like a doll in a box and said, "Fancy going exploring? We won't get lost next week!"

Though reluctant to leave the sun, Wayne agreed. Exploring would either put that pull out of his mind or help him figure out where it was coming from.

It wasn't until Wayne started to explore the grounds on another nice weekend that he figured out the pull came from within the Forbidden Forest. And there was no way he was going in there just on the off chance that he'd figure out what it was. It could be a monster for all he knew.

"I wouldn't go in if I were you," a pretentious voice drawled from behind him.

Wayne turned to face Malfoy, surprised that the other would even bother to seek him out given they were in different houses. "I wasn't planning on it."

"Looked rather like you were," Malfoy said.

"Hm." Wayne didn't say anything else on the subject. "Enjoying classes? Slytherins are with the Gryffindors, aren't they?"

"Sadly." Malfoy heaved a put-on sigh. "Potter is as insufferable as ever."

"Like you?" Wayne said automatically. He recoiled a second later, realizing what he'd said. "Not like that!"

"No, you did mean it like that." Malfoy scowled at him. "I'm nothing like that self-righteous prick!"

"You're different," Wayne said charitably, shifting subtly. That pull tugged at his mind. "Certainly. Did you want something?"

Malfoy pushed his nose into the air, silvery-blond hair glinting in the sun. "As it so happens, I did. I've heard you've got a knack with Charms and Transfigurations."

Defense, too, but Quirrell was rather inept, and Wayne hadn't done any wand work so far. "What if I do?"

"I propose a study group," Malfoy said. "I'll help you with Potions."

As Snape wasn't pleasant to anyone except his House, Wayne could use all the help he could get. "My friends will join us."

"So will mine." Malfoy raised an eyebrow, looking so much like the photos of his father that Wayne had an eerie sense of déjà vu. "Then we have a deal?"

Wayne had absolutely no clue why Malfoy would even want to associate with him, but he wouldn't turn down a study group to help with Potions. "Sounds great."

The informal agreement had Malfoy wrinkling his nose in distaste, but he didn't leave, instead sticking with Wayne and telling him all about the flying lesson they had and how much trouble Potter was in for flying without Hooch present.

Ernie and Justin were less than pleased with Wayne upon finding out that they had a study group with Malfoy and his friends. This could have been because Wayne didn't let them know who would be joining them until Malfoy actually showed up, but thankfully they didn't say anything until it was over.

"Malfoy, really?" Ernie asked incredulously once they were back in their Common Room. "You do know who he is, don't you?"

"Of course I do," Wayne said, petting a demanding Dane. "Which is why it's a good thing to be friendly with him."

"With Malfoy?" Justin's nose wrinkled. "He'll turn around and stab you in the back first chance he gets."

"I could, too," Wayne pointed out, not knowing where the thought came from, only that it was true and hurt him. He paused, pursing his lips, trying to catalogue the feeling and failing. "We're not our parents," he settled on saying. "Besides, he's helpful."

Ernie made a face. "Fine, I'll give him that. But Potions sucks enough without a Slytherin helping us."

"He knows the tricks of the trade," Wayne saod. "You don't have to stay. But he's not a bad sort, really. He can't help who his parents are."

Ernie stared hard at him. "Sometimes you say the oddest things."

"The obvious, you mean?"

"Not the obvious, no. But do you have to be so…adult-like about it?"

Wayne furrowed his brow in confusion. "I'm not sure what you mean?"

"Adults don't know when they adult," Zacharias said pompously from nowhere. "It's a thing."

Ernie whirled to squint at Zacharias. "Where did you come from? And how long have you been listening?"

"It's not like your conversation was private," Zacharias pointed out. "Besides, Hopkins's right. Best to have someone like Malfoy on your good side. You never know when it's a good thing to have a pureblood in your pocket, even if it is someone like Malfoy."

"And you'd know?" Ernie raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"It's basic politics." Zacharias sniffed. "You should do some reading."

"Yeah, no. I think I'll stick with being a kid and leave the politics to the adults and Wayne."

"Hey." Wayne sounded affronted.

"It's a good thing," Ernie assured him.

"It didn't sound like a good thing," Justin said dubiously.

"Just don't turn into a Granger," Zacharias advised Wayne. "She's too bossy for her own good. Even the Ravenclaws don't get along with her."

Wayne distantly remembered a Hermione Granger asking about a toad on the Hogwarts Express and also being sorted into Gryffindor. She hadn't seemed too bossy then, but then one never knew.

"How would you know that?" Ernie asked.

"I listen," Zacharias said. "Gossip's interesting if you know where to go. Besides, it's hard to miss her studying in the library, surrounded by piles of books." He looked at Wayne. "Think Malfoy would mind if I joined in?"

It took Wayne a moment to realize Zacharias was asking about the study group. "I don't think he cares."

"Good." Zacharias sounded pleased. "I've got History of Magic notes."

"You mean you actually stay awake?" Wayne asked incredulously. As far as he knew, no one managed to stay awake in Binn's class. For a ghost, the man was a boring professor.

"I know someone who does." Zacharias shrugged.

"More power to them, I suppose," Ernie muttered, disbelieving.

"Not like it's useful," Justin said. "Goblin rebellions are all he ever talks about, and we've got more in history than rebellions by goblins."

As Wayne hadn't bothered to read the history book, he really couldn't say whether Binns was following the curriculum or just focusing on a particular part of history at the expense of everything else. Either way, it was boring and sleep-inducing, and he hadn't ever thought he'd fall asleep in class here. "I'm sure Malfoy will be pleased to have proper notes," he said instead.

"'Pleased' is one word for it," Ernie said skeptically.

"Come off Malfoy," Justin said pleadingly. "How about a game of Exploding Snap?"

Even though the last time they'd played had left Ernie with singed eyebrows and Wayne with a slight burn on his hands, they all readily agreed. It would be a nice break from their schoolwork.

The weeks flew by quickly. The study group continued meeting despite Wayne's doubts, and Malfoy would occasionally meet up with him to complain about one thing or another or advise him about certain things.

At one point Wayne finally gave into his curiosity and bluntly asked, "Is there a reason you always talk to me? I thought you'd have friends in your own House."

Malfoy stared at him uncomfortably for several moments, something akin to hurt in his eyes. "You were polite on the train," he said finally, voice stiff. "If you'd rather I leave, I can do that."

"It's not that I don't like you," Wayne said quickly, wincing inwardly. "I just thought you'd rather spend your time with someone else."

"It's my decision," Malfoy told him.

That had been the end of that conversation, and Wayne had feared that he'd slipped onto Malfoy's bad side, but when they met again for studying and nothing seemed to have changed, he breathed a sigh of relief.

It wasn't that Hufflepuffs and Slytherins didn't make friends. The enmity was primarily between Gryffindor and Slytherin, though Wayne had seen some first years from the two Houses together in discreet places where no one could see. Slytherins made friends in Ravenclaw as well.

It was just…it was Malfoy. And Malfoy was in a different league from many other students given who his parents were. It was like being friends with Harry Potter, and Wayne had only ever seen him from a distance and always with a red-haired boy who could only be a Weasley.

The fact that Malfoy had specifically sought him out of all of Hufflepuff was touching, though Wayne knew he would still have to be careful. His mum had already told him to be wary, but to treasure the friendship as long as it lasted because Malfoy was still a boy.

And there wasn't much the elder Malfoy could do unless he interfered via the school board.

Zacharias became less distant as the weeks passed, but he was still snobby and didn't quite fit into the group Ernie, Justin, and Wayne had made. They did make space for him when they could, but usually they didn't bother. They were Hufflepuffs, but loyalty only extended so far when it came to someone who cursed them out when they tried to wake him or kept trying to play teacher's pet.

Wayne continued to feel that pulling sensation, which never abated. He hadn't told his parents about it, and Dane had only blinked slowly at him when Wayne confided in him about it. Then again, there was only so much Dane could do, even as a kneazle mix.

The pull definitely came from within the Forbidden Forest, but there was no way Wayne was going in there unless he prepared for it. Knowing how to levitate things only went so far, and it wouldn't protect him against the dangers that were in there.

Time passed in this way, and before he knew it, it was All Hallows' Eve and there were pumpkins and skeleton heads everywhere. And even more frights from Peeve, who seemed all too gleeful to be even more chaotic than usual during Halloween.

Wayne had to admit he was curious about how Hogwarts did October 31st beyond the amazing decorations. All he could pry out of the older students was that there were a lot of sweets involved.

And there were. The feast that night consisted mainly of sweets, and there was no way Wayne was telling his parents about this, though they were probably aware anyway. Or at least his mum was.

Then there was the troll.

Wayne was confused all of a second about whether this was part of the festivities before the Hall broke out into terrified screaming.

Flinching, Wayne shrunk down, clamping his hands over his ears. It didn't seem to do anything, because the screaming was inside him. It was terrified, pained, and tearing something inside of him. That pull tugged sharply at the back of his mind, nearly drowned out by the screaming.

It wasn't until Ernie tugged at his arm that Wayne realized that they were clearing out of the Hall. He followed after his friends, dazed, head still ringing with those agonized screams.

"Are you all right?" Ernie asked him anxiously once they were inside the Common Room. "What happened?"

"I…" Wayne shook his head, struggling to focus. There was a name mixed in with the screaming, spoken in a strange language and yet still understood. "I don't know."

"Don't do too well with loud noises?" Justin asked sympathetically. "My granddad – he can't stand loud noises. It sends him back to the war."

Wayne didn't think it was that, but he didn't have an explanation. "Yeah…" He shook his head again, relieved the screaming was fading now. As was the name. He probably hadn't heard it right. "There was a troll?" He forced himself to sound normal.

"Apparently," Ernie said. "It's strange. Trolls aren't supposed to get in."

"Unless someone let it in?" Justin suggested in a low voice.

Ernie shot him a skeptical look. "Come off it. Who'd let a bloody troll inside Hogwarts? It's practically suicide with the professors!"

Wayne closed his eyes, rubbing the heels of his hands into them and trying to tune out the voices of his friends, letting them sink to the background as a comforting hum.

"Hey, is he all right?" a girl's voice asked. "He looks rather white."

"Doesn't do well with loud noises," Ernie answered. "Chocolate should help. They're bringing the feast into the common rooms, aren't they?"

"In a little bit," the girl said, "but I've got some chocolate here if you think it'll help."

"Best thing for frights," Ernie assured. A few seconds later his hand came down on Wayne's shoulder and he was saying, "Here, Wayne. Eat this."

Taking the chocolate, Wayne pulled his hands away from his face to see that Hannah had been the one to give him her chocolate. He smiled feebly at her, taking a small bite of the chocolate a moment later.

"Bit of a nasty shock, wasn't it?" Hannah's smile was nervous. "I thought for a second there that Professor Quirrell was just having us on."

"It's still possible," Justin said dubiously. "But it's a rather awful prank. The twins wouldn't even pull this."

Which was saying a lot, considering that the twins had made off with all the toilet seats in Hogwarts at the beginning of October. No one had been able to prove anything, but the twins had looked far too cheerful for the few days it took to replace all the seats.

"We'll find out tomorrow," Wayne said, taking another bite of the chocolate. "Thanks," he said to Hannah.

"It's no problem." Hannah waved it off. "Have you got any chocolate frog cards? I'm trying to collect them, but I keep collecting repeats. I've got ten of Dumbledore."

And that was how Hannah Abbot joined their little group, her friend Susan Bones following soon after.

It was all over the castle the next day that Harry Potter had defeated a troll. The rumors started off sedate, announcing that Harry Potter and Ron Weasley had shut a troll in the bathroom with Hermione Granger and then decided to finish it off after all, but they finished with the most outlandish tale of how Harry Potter had led the troll on a merry dance through the castle before finally pushing it off the Astronomy Tower.

Whatever the truth was, Potter could be seen with Weasley and Granger now, the three of them a tight-knit group. Given what Wayne had seen of how Weasley and Granger interacted, he was rather confused as to how that even worked.

Malfoy didn't want to talk about the event at all, refusing to even acknowledge that Potter had done anything in favor of blasting Dumbledore for having failed to consider that the troll had been supposed to be in the dungeons, and where was the Slytherin Common Room? The dungeons!

Wayne had heard a lot on Dumbledore's failures since then, though thankfully Malfoy hadn't done it in the library during their study group sessions.

The rest of the fall term passed quietly, and winter break was welcomed by everybody. Wayne was looking forward to going home and not thinking about classes or homework or being politely friendly to Malfoy and hoping not to get stabbed in the back.

What was more, at home he wouldn't have to deal with that constant pull.

Ever since the troll, his nights had been restless, filled with whispers, some screams, and pain. At one point he'd woken up frozen to the bone, and he'd had to sit in front of the fire to warm up. His friends had been puzzled upon seeing him sleeping on the carpet in front of the fireplace, and Wayne had given them the excuse of not being able to sleep.

No, he was going home, and he was leaving that frustrating pull and the nightmares behind. He was sure it had something to do about being in Hogwarts.

All he had to do was put some distance between him and Hogwarts. It should solve the problem.

It had to. Because the alternative was that he was losing his mind, and Wayne didn't even want to consider that.

Thankfully, the further away he traveled from Hogwarts, the more distant the pull became, until he couldn't feel it at all. It was a relief to know that it had been Hogwarts and not just his own mind. But that still brought up the problem as to why. What was in the Forbidden Forest that affected him so?

He couldn't talk to his parents about this. His father wouldn't understand, and his mother would likely feed him nothing but potions and contact Madame Pomfrey to put him on a regime. Not only did Wayne absolutely hate drinking potions, he didn't want to be that kid. The kid on the potions regime because something went wrong in his brain.

So Wayne said nothing to his parents about the pull, but he did tell them everything else about Hogwarts, including how amazing it was. His father was entranced about the lessons Wayne took, and he kept asking questions until his mother pulled him away and told him to start cooking.

The break was everything he'd hoped for, his nights peaceful until Wayne could go to bed and not fear the dreams he would have.

"Co – Co—" Static crackle before the word resounded loud and clear. "Commander!"

"—Host—"

"—a war."

A surge of utter wrath, holy light that burned everything it touched with its sheer potency, and the resounding screams of injured soldiers following nir orders.

"—attacked by demons, corrupted and tainted human souls." Static crackle. "—created a realm known as Hell."

Sibling attacking sibling. Those no longer following the righteous path marred by ice and darkness, wings shrouded in black, their song violent and angry.

Ne faced another, the other burning bright and cold in fury and desperation. And ne did what ne had to, Casting nem out.

The scene – one of burning wings and screaming and the world shaking around them all – faded out to one of utter cold and silence.

Except for the shouting. "You couldn't give up! You couldn't lay down your sword! You had to be the good soldier! Now look where we are—" Another crackle of static, followed by a sharp piercing pain through his entire body. "Because of you! Can you hear them, sibling? Can you? Or is it silent in your head?"

It was utterly silent. There was no sense of anyone else. Not even the furious being currently sharing the space with him.

"You understand now, don't you? This is what you sentenced me to. What you've sentenced us both to because you couldn't stand to defy our Parent."

He couldn't say anything. Was incapable of speaking beyond the resounding shock and horror resonating through him and stealing all words. Hadn't he been the good son? Hadn't he done what he was supposed to? So why?

Why was he alone?

"ANSWER ME, MICHAEL!"

The name – this time utterly clear of static – tore through him with the furious scream, alongside a sudden, piercing pain that startled him awake with a loud gasp.

Trembling, his sheets wrapped around him, breath coming in short, panicky gasps, Wayne stared at the ceiling, heart thundering in his ears.

There was an achy pain in his body, and every single muscle was as taut as a wire, like something was pulling and pulling. Drawing in a breath through his nose, his jaw clenched tightly against the pain spiraling through him. The scream echoed in his ears, filled with a desperation and anger and grief that he could scarcely comprehend but thought he should.

Squirming out of his blankets, Wayne ran a hand over his face and into his hair, tugging the curls lightly. He could feel the cold sweat on his skin and the minute trembles in his limbs now that he was calming down.

The dream itself was fading, except for those three words that had jolted him into awareness. Those were crystal clear.

What wasn't was why he was dreaming about whatever that was. Was it something wizards went through once they started going to Hogwarts? Did all his friends feel a pulling sensation to something in the Forbidden Forest? Was it a grand secret that everyone had to figure out for themselves?

Snorting, Wayne berated himself for even thinking of something so ridiculous. There was no way such a thing would actually stay secret. Someone would've eventually said something. There would've been rumors.

Taking a deep breath and tensing and relaxing every single one of his muscles despite the ache still resounding through him, Wayne resolved to spend a lot of time in the library when he went back.

He wasn't a Gryffindor, but that didn't mean he was cowardly. It just meant he would prepare himself before doing anything foolhardy.

Even if this was something that no Gryffindor would ever attempt unless they were suicidal.

His parents noticed something was up during the last few days of break, not that Wayne told them beyond saying he wasn't sleeping well. It was part of the truth at any rate, which was all Wayne would say whenever Dane fixed him with a disapproving look.

He hadn't had another vivid dream like that again, but his body wouldn't stop hurting, and that aching sense of loneliness and silence was worse than before. Going back to Hogwarts would mean returning to that pulling sensation to who-knew-where, but it also meant getting answers.

And Wayne desperately needed answers.

He kept his intentions to himself even as he met his friends on the train back to Hogwarts. There was nothing he could do to hide the shadows under his eyes from lack of sleep, but his friends figured that he'd spent a lot of late nights playing games or doing homework and ribbed him mercilessly for being such a goody two-shoes.

"At least I don't have anything left," Wayne retorted after the third time Ernie teased him about it. "I had the last few days completely free of schoolwork."

"Bugger schoolwork," Ernie said cheerfully. "How was your break?"

The pull came back the closer they drew to Hogwarts, but that didn't matter at all once they were actually inside the castle, because there was glorious noise. It wasn't quite what he needed – but what did he need? – but it was enough for now.

Once classes went back into full swing and Quidditch games picked up again, Wayne spent as much time in the library as he could, checking out books and practicing spells. To ward off suspicion, he kept up his other extracurricular activities. He slept as little as possible, fearing the dreams that would come.

The last one he'd had had been a particularly vivid one of a black-haired woman shrouded in utter darkness, with numerous offshoots of darkness spreading from her. He had no idea why the sight of her had sent chills down his spine, but it had. She'd looked completely ordinary but for something off about her.

Given Scotland's extraordinarily rainy weather in the spring, they didn't spend a lot of time outside. The few days that were sunny and pleasant, Wayne disappeared into the library, as the pull into the Forbidden Forest was a lot stronger outside.

Even with his precautions, his friends noticed that something was wrong. Heck, Malfoy noticed, shooting him worried looks every study session they had. And Wayne had heard Malfoy actually talking to Justin about it, even though Justin was a Muggle-born and Malfoy was as prejudiced as pure-bloods came. That had been an issue during the study sessions, but Ernie hadn't let any of Malfoy's nonsense fly, and Susan had a rather terrifying blank stare that shut Malfoy up quickly enough.

Wayne figured she'd inherited it from her aunt.

It came to a head the morning Malfoy came raving to Wayne about a dragon in Hagrid's hut.

Naturally, Wayne stared rather blearily at him until realizing that Malfoy was completely serious and that he should probably do something about this before Malfoy got into trouble. "And?" he prompted, cutting Malfoy off in the middle of his ranting and receiving a vehement glare for it. Tired as he was, he just didn't care.

"And?" Malfoy sputtered indignantly. "Potter was there! And his friends! They know about it – what that oaf is doing in his wooden hut."

"Not very smart," Wayne agreed, eyes going sideways as a dust mote caught his attention. It took him a moment to realize his attention had slid, and then he looked back at Malfoy, only to see the other staring at him worriedly.

"You've not been sleeping," Malfoy said stiffly.

"I sleep." Wayne suppressed a yawn, neck muscles clenching in protest briefly before relaxing. A muscle in his leg twitched, and he discreetly rubbed it out with an achy hand.

"Yes, which is why you've been smearing dirt under your eyes." The words were acerbic. "And why it looks like you took a bath in flour."

Wayne frowned. "That seems rather unsanitary."

Malfoy scoffed. "Of course that's what you settled on. Never mind the flour, Hopkins. If you've not been sleeping, you should go see Pomfrey."

"I've been sleeping." Wayne resisted the urge to rub his eyes. "I've just been busy."

"Yes, you're turning into Granger." Malfoy leaned in. "You do realize that having your nose stuck in a book all hours of the day is not attractive?"

"And here I was thinking that I was going to attract all the bookworms."

"I'm sure they love you." Malfoy drew back, eyes narrowing. "If you don't want to say, fine. I'll go deal with the dragon myself."

By the time Wayne realized what Malfoy had just said – too caught up in seeing how Malfoy's robes billowed dramatically behind him as he swept out of the library – it was too late to stop him.

Well…it wasn't like Malfoy would do anything too crazy with a dragon involved, right?

The morning that Gryffindor suddenly found itself in last place in the running for the House Cup and Malfoy skulked around with a rather sulky look on his face told Wayne that he probably should have tried to chase after Malfoy to say something before he did something stupid. Like earn the ire of Potter, Granger, and Weasley.

Although those three had enough trouble with the rest of the school being absolutely furious with them. Longbottom was also in trouble, but he did well enough with shrinking into the background.

"I have detention with those four!" Malfoy snapped at Wayne that day. "It's tonight."

"Maybe you'll make friends," Ernie offered unsympathetically, shamelessly eavesdropping.

"Don't be stupid, Macmillan." Malfoy's nostrils flared. "This is utterly ridiculous. If my father knew of this—"

"Doesn't he?" Ernie asked. "As governor and all…" He trailed off meaningfully, raising his eyebrows.

Malfoy looked shifty. "They don't know everything."

Ernie made an unconvinced sound, eyebrows raised.

"Good luck?" Wayne finally said, smiling sheepishly.

Malfoy sniffed. "I don't need luck. Now those four." He gestured dramatically. "They do." Without another word, he stalked off, robes doing that billowing thing again that had Wayne seriously thinking he must be taking lessons from Snape.

"I wonder if he gets lessons from Snape," Ernie said, staring after him. "I can't do that."

Justin poked his head from around a bookshelf. "Is he gone? Oh, thank God." He plopped himself down, pulling over the book Wayne had been trying to read. "This is kind of advanced. What are you reading so far ahead for?"

"Stuff," Wayne answered vaguely, elbow nudging against the stack of other books he'd finished perusing. "Thought I'd see what it's like to be an actual bookworm that lives in the books."

Carefully pushing the book away from Wayne, Justin nodded. "You're definitely succeeding. How about you try and see what it's like being a bed bug?"

"I've always wanted to be a bed bug!" Ernie said excitedly.

"Are you into biting?" Hannah asked, leaning against the side of the table. "Because that's what bed bugs do. They bite."

"But they live in beds," Ernie said, gesturing wildly and almost smacking Wayne in the face.

"How about a dust mouse?" Hannah suggested, ignoring him. "They sound cute."

"Ew," Justin and Ernie said simultaneously.

"They get vacuumed up," Wayne said drowsily, his head resting on his arms.

There was a short pause before Ernie said, "What's a vacuum?"

"Seriously?" Justin sounded incredulous. "You don't have vacuum cleaners?"

"I told you before: Muggle things don't work around magic. They just burn out."

"A radio is a Muggle thing. How come that works?"

Whatever Ernie would have said in response to that Wayne never heard. He'd drifted off into a fuzzy white world with drifting shadows and blinding figures of light.

Agonized screaming filled the space. Energy furled through the area, brushing past him and warming him slightly with the remnants of the heat they contained, though it quickly froze with the sheer cold radiating from the one who had lived here longest.

"Please, no, no, no, sto—"

"You locked us in here. You gave them that information."

Static fizzle, and then, "—sibling, mercy—"

"Who showed me mercy? You locked me in here and left, turning your backs on me. Why should I show mercy to you when you denied me the same?"

"No—" The word broke off into raw screaming again, punctuated by sobs and periods of stricken silence when the pain grew too much, fragments of Grace and light fizzling around the Cage and dissipating into nothingness, joining the energy funneling around them.

His brother pleaded with him to end it, stop the pain, but he did nothing. It would stop in time, as it had with him. His brother would just have to wait until the other worked out his anger.

"Michael, sibling, please—"

"Parent, Parent, someone—"

"MICHAEL!"

Eventually, the other grew tired of the noise. "So fond of your voice, aren't you, little sibling? I wonder…what's a Messenger without a voice? Let's find out, shall we?"

The screams silenced permanently, but there was no quieting the anguish and pain shrieking through every portion of Grace ripped out.

Then…suddenly

the Cage

sh

att

ered

With a muffled whimper, Wayne jerked awake, body curled in tightly. There was no pain this time, but the sudden shock of having had his entire world shatter into pieces around him still had him paralyzed in fear.

Shoving his face into his pillow, he struggled to calm his breathing, focusing on the sound to drown out those awful, awful screams that had followed him into the waking world. Such raw, pained screams he'd never heard before. They were the screams of one who had been pushed far past his breaking point.

Minutes later, once Wayne had calmed his breathing and his heart wasn't pounding, he forced himself to remember everything he could about the dreams he'd had.

He was someone called Michael in the dreams. And Michael was a bloody bastard.

No, backtrack.

Michael was a bloody bastard, but he was a bastard who was beyond exhausted. Like Wayne was feeling right now.

The other people in the dreams were family of a sort. There had been enough of the word "sibling" for Wayne to get that message, but he hadn't heard any names. Anytime someone did say a name other than Michael's, there was a static fizzle that drowned it out.

What kind of family tortured each other like that? Let their siblings be tortured like that if they had the power to stop it?

It was just…cruel.

Kicking off his covers, Wayne turned onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. He'd fallen asleep in the library earlier, and he'd practically sleepwalked through the rest of the day before falling in bed and passing out immediately. Someone else must have pulled the covers over him.

Wayne would be embarrassed about it if he wasn't still so bloody exhausted.

Something else was happening tonight…

Ah, Malfoy's detention with the Gryffindors. Wayne wondered how that was going.

Doubtlessly he'd find out in the morning.

"The Forbidden Forest! Unicorns! Monsters drinking their blood!" Malfoy looked wild-eyed, his usually perfectly coiffed blond hair in disarray. "I can't believe them! My father is going to hear about this!"

Wayne was the only one present today, since he'd decided to go out and spend time in the sun. "You mean detention was in the Forbidden Forest?" It was the only thing he was absolutely certain Malfoy had said. Everything else didn't make any sense.

"Yes!" Malfoy said indignantly. "There are werewolves in there! And ghoulish monsters drinking unicorn blood!"

"It wasn't a full moon last night," Wayne pointed out, quite sensibly he thought, but Malfoy didn't seem to share the same opinion judging by the nasty look he shot him. He quickly added, "Did you really see a ghoul?"

It took Malfoy a moment before he admitted, grudgingly, "No. It just looked like one. Wearing a cloak and everything… I left Potter there." He didn't seem proud of himself for doing so.

As Wayne hadn't heard anything about the Boy-Who-Lived biting it, he figured that Potter was perfectly all right and Malfoy was just feeling guilty for having run off without a single thought for the other boy.

"I didn't know ghouls wore clothes," Wayne said instead. "I always more imagined them naked."

Malfoy stared at him, face disgusted. "I didn't need to imagine that." Glancing away, he caught sight of something he evidently didn't agree with and made another face. "That's my cue, Hopkins."

Leaving as he usually did, but this time without the dramatic billowing of his cloak, Malfoy was gone before Wayne could do anything. It took him a moment to see just what had made Malfoy leave when he caught sight of the Gryffindor trio that had been on detention with Malfoy. None of them looked particularly happy, and Potter seemed a bit peaky.

For a second, Wayne was unbelievably jealous of them, for having been able to go inside the Forbidden Forest on a school-sanctioned outing. It just wasn't fair, because he'd been here for ages fearing going inside because it was the Forbidden Forest, and here they were able to go in because of something involving unicorns.

A brief gust of wind touched Wayne's cheeks. Blinking, he shook his head and mentally slapped himself. The only reason they'd gone into the forest was because of detention. That wasn't anything to be jealous of, especially since they'd lost their Houses fifty points each.

Hufflepuff would not have been pleased with Wayne if he'd been out there with Malfoy trying to catch a dragon and stop it from burning down Hagrid's wooden hut. Or whatever Malfoy had been doing. Probably trying to get Potter in trouble and landing in it himself because he hadn't thought things through.

Several minutes later, his friends showed up, lacking any school supplies and incentive to study.

"I thought I saw Malfoy walking off in a huff," Ernie said, sitting down next to Wayne. "Anything up?"

"Unicorns and ghouls," Wayne answered, grinning at the confused expressions his friends put on. "Just being Malfoy."

"Naturally," Susan said. "I still can't get over you being friends with him."

"I wouldn't call us friends. More like people who know each other and try to get along?"

"Call it what it is," Ernie said. "You're friends with a side of poking going on. Did you sleep last night?"

"Yes," Wayne said quite truthfully, just not adding how much he'd slept.

His friends shot him skeptical looks but thankfully didn't say anything else.

"You do know that you have to sleep if you want to grow, right?" Hannah asked.

"I'm fine being a shrimp," Wayne said blandly. "I like myself for who I am."

"What, all five feet of you?" Ernie raised his eyebrows, smirking.

"Every single inch," Wayne answered perfectly seriously.

"The absolutely frightening thing is that I've no idea whether you're serious," Ernie said, half-wonderingly.

"No, he's definitely serious," Susan said. She held out a bag. "Have a bean?"

Several seconds later, Wayne regretted taking her up on the offer, as he'd been the unfortunate recipient of a cement-flavored bean.

Finals were coming up, and while Wayne had been doing a lot of extra studying on the side, he wasn't too worried about his grades. The study sessions had done a great deal to help him prepare, and he was almost certain that he would get at least an EE in Potions, even with Snape's biased grading.

He was fortunate not to be Potter, as Snape apparently loathed him just on principle.

Unfortunately, as finals drew closer, Wayne was filled with a sense of urgent dread and impending doom that he could find no source for. It was as if the end of the world was nigh, and he was the only person wandering around with any sense of it.

Most of the other students were concerned with finals, and Wayne had seen Granger every single time he went into the library, surrounded by piles of books. She'd also been seen haranguing her friends to study nonstop, and Wayne was only thankful that none of his friends were even remotely like that.

In fact, they were all rather busy with revising, so much so that they didn't even ask Wayne whether he was getting any sleep. Which he was now, needing to be sure that he could remember everything he was learning. If there was a healthy way to retain information that didn't mean sleeping and subjecting himself to strange nightmares and dreams, then Wayne would have done it.

As the end of the term approached, Wayne felt more and more indecisive and nervous about his course of action. He was only eleven, and he shouldn't be doing this, wizard or no. He could deal with a few nightmares and an odd pulling sensation, especially if it meant he'd still be alive in the end.

So maybe he shouldn't do it. Maybe he should just let it be and stay alive.

It would be the smart decision.

And Wayne wasn't a fool.

"Hold, brother."

"Why? You're not going to do it."

How could he? There was no point to it anymore. "No. I won't."

"Then step aside."

Why didn't he understand? "I can't do that."

"Then you would have him destroy everything?"

His younger brother stood in front of him, glowing brightly with the power of their Father's Grace flowing through him, so bright that he could scarcely stand to look upon him. He had the power – he could do something about it that no one else could.

He had more of a choice now. He couldn't do this. He couldn't kill his brother. There was no point to it anymore. Their Father didn't care, and he was just…done with it all. He wanted to close his eyes and go to sleep. He wanted desperately to rest, wanted to turn and lean on someone who could take care of it all for him. He was tired of making the decisions and messing up.

He'd killed so many through his thoughtless decisions. He didn't want more death.

So he said as much. "…this is my choice." He had turned his back to his brother, trusting in him not to do anything insane.

But as he finished speaking, there was a sharp pain in the center of his Grace, deep in his core, fracturing and spiraling out to splinter the rest of his being into pieces. He thought he heard someone whisper "And thank you, brother," but he wasn't certain.

His world shattered into painful darkness, everything he was burning into nothingness.

There was something like warmth, touching and cradling nem gently. It was familiar and desperately needed. A question of sort was posed, and ne answered negatively, wanting nothing more than to rest in the warmth after being trapped in the cold for so long.

The warmth didn't subside; it was utterly peaceful.

There was no warning when something pulled nem out, entirely unwilling but helpless to resist. A soft whisper pushed words into nem, words ne didn't quite catch, but ne didn't care, wanting too desperately to return to that warmth and sense of peace.

Dark – it was dark – and then it was burning bright and nir surroundings rushed past nem, solidifying to become trees zooming past nem. Until, abruptly, ne was at the base of a giant one glowing with an ephemeral light.

And ne

was

Falling

He jerked awake, limbs shaking and breath coming too fast. There was no coherent thought beyond a desperate need to be somewhere.

He stumbled out of his bed, putting on his shoes and clothes and taking his wand. Then he slipped out silently, using the Disillusionment Charm that he had learned weeks before to travel through the castle without alerting anyone.

He didn't feel the temperature outside, every atom of his being focused on that pull and where he had to go. It was insistent in a way that it had never been before, and he could barely walk fast enough, casting a quick Lumos to light up his surroundings as he walked through the trees into the forest.

It wasn't so bad at first, the trees spaced far enough apart so as not to be suffocating, and the ground free of obstructions. But the deeper he went, the closer the trees were and the less space there was to walk. There was rustling around him, the sounds of animals more dangerous than he being alerted to his presence and tracking him through the trees.

But he just didn't…care. He was too focused on following that internal compass that led to him to where he needed to be.

"Wayne. Wayne!" someone shouted at him, grabbing his arm and shaking him.

"Keep your voice down!" another person hissed.

It took him a moment, and then his eyes focused on the faces of his friends, worried and pale in the light of his wand.

"What…" His voice was slow, sounding dreamy even to his ears.

"I think he's drugged," Justin said, staring at him worriedly from behind Ernie.

"What the bloody hell are you doing in the forest?" Ernie demanded, still clutching at his arm.

"I don't…" He turned away, back to where he needed to go. "There's somewhere I have to be."

"In the Forbidden Forest?" Ernie sounded frightened. "Come on, Wayne. Let's go back, and you can go to the Hospital Wing."

"No." He pulled his arm out of Ernie's grip, taking a step back. "I need…"

"We should've told a professor," Justin said frantically, eyes not leaving him.

"When? We barely kept up as it is!"

His voice was cold – almost unrecognizable – as he said, "Follow if you must. But stay out of this."

"What—"

"Wayne—"

Not listening any further, he turned back to the path and continued walking. Only this time his friends followed closely behind him, worried muttering subsiding into frightened silence.

He wasn't sure how long it took him, but he could tell that he was getting closer. Finally, he stumbled out into a small clearing of sorts where the trees didn't grow quite so closely together. This was in part due to the gigantic base of the tree taking up most of the space, its roots sprawling out from around the base.

It was absolutely enormous, and it almost seemed to be glowing faintly, though it gave off no illumination.

There were hissing noises around him, along with chattering and clacking. The sound of hooves rang in the distance, and the wind rustled the branches of the giant tree before him.

This…was it. Where he needed to be.

As if in a dream, he walked forward.

"What the—"

"Bloody hell –Wayne! What are you doing?"

The trunk was vast, so much bigger than anything he'd ever seen before, the pieces of bark bigger than his hands.

And, reaching out, his outstretched fingers touched the rough bark.

Instant fire rushed through his veins, filling him from the inside out and setting everything afire. He was burning from the inside out, light suffusing every cell and stimulating him with long-forgotten sensation.

And he…simply was. Who he had always been and always would be.

The earth itself came to life under his feet, and he could feel the rotation of its axis, the interminable pull of gravity and its own inertia keeping it in a fixed orbit around the sun. He could feel the heat of the sun, so many miles away. Every single soul on the planet was a bright illumination in his vision until he pushed it back.

The singing of the universe was all around him, and he had missed hearing it. Had missed being able to hear this.

The rough sensation of bark under his fingers came to the forefront of his mind, and he carefully curled his fingers, intrigued with the way his Grace fit into this new vessel of his. It was a perfect fit, so unlike his last vessel, and it felt like part of him, not a suit he was wearing to make himself visible to mortal eyes.

He was on his knees before the tree, having slumped down sometime during the interim. Heaving in a shuddering breath, he covered his face with his hands, trying desperately to reacquaint his old memories and sense of self with who he had been only moments before.

Why was he here? Where was the Host? Desperately reaching out to Heaven yielded nothing, and he cringed back, not wanting to chance touching upon any of his siblings and forcing a conversation he wasn't ready to have.

Wouldn't ever be ready to have.

Gasping sounds from behind him brought his attention to the fact that Ernie and Justin were still behind him and hadn't moved since he'd regained his Grace.

Lifting his face from his hands, he took a deep breath and opened his eyes, focusing his vision so that it was limited to the human spectrum. The leftover energy in his tree was too distracting otherwise, the light blindingly bright to anyone who could see it.

Standing, he turned to the friends he had made while human. They seemed fine, having closed their eyes reflexively when he'd unknowing initiated the process of reintegrating his Grace. Still, just to be sure, he asked, "Are you all right?"

They both flinched at the sound of his voice, despite how soft he had kept it.

"What the bloody hell, Wayne?" Justin's voice cracked slightly, and he cracked his eyes open, widening them upon realizing that it was as dark as it had been before. "What just happened?"

Hesitating slightly, he considered what to say. They didn't need to know what had happened. He could erase their memories, drop them back where they belonged, and leave. Go where no one would ever find him.

"You touched what you shouldn't have," a new voice said, startling the two boys. "This place was one of safe harbor for those who had none."

Lips quirking, he met the centaur's eyes, remaining exactly where he was. "That blessing will remain," he said. "I simply reclaimed what has always been mine."

The centaur looked piercingly at him; the rest of his herd remained hidden in the trees, silent. "You are not human."

"No," he said, ignoring the wide eyes of Ernie and Justin. "Will that be a problem?" He kept his tone purposely mild, only raising an eyebrow.

The centaur did hesitate now, apparently sensing that he'd just treaded where he shouldn't have. "No. So long as you leave us in peace."

"I have no wish to harm you." He had no desire to do much of anything.

Shifting, the centaur glanced at a silent Ernie and Justin. "Then you will take the children with you?"

"I will."

Stepping forward to stand between Ernie and Justin, he inclined his head at the centaur, raising his eyebrows. Then, with one sweep of his wings, he flew all three of them back to the empty Common Room, unsurprised when Ernie and Justin reeled back from him the moment they landed.

Ernie was ashen, eyes wide and betrayed. "Who are you? What have you done with Wayne?"

Tilting his head, he sounded his name out in his head, reluctant to associate himself with it given his earlier perceptions. But it was who he was. He would always be that, regardless of what he wished. "My name is Michael," he said quietly, meeting Ernie's eyes. "Wayne is…" He considered how he should explain this to a human, if he should even bother to explain it at all.

But Justin and Ernie had been his friends, and he did feel some affection for them, leftover from his time as a human. And the thought of tampering with their memories…left a sour taste in his mouth. Which was strange seeing as how he wouldn't have thought twice before.

"I was Wayne," Michael said finally, squaring his shoulders and tilting his chin up. "He was who I was before I remembered."

"What are you?" Ernie demanded, panic underlying his words.

Michael opened his mouth to give the answer he would have before, then stopped. Was he even that anymore? He was still Michael, but was he anything more? He'd cast aside his responsibilities, laid down his sword and been killed for it.

He could sense no one of his family here, and it wasn't like he was cut off from the Host as he had been in the Cage, locked inside his own head with no one but Lucifer for company. And they could only communicate verbally, their internal method of communication cut off thanks to the magic of the Cage.

There was no one to command here. There was no prophecy to fulfill. There was no one to kill. He wasn't dead, resting in the warmth of his Father's light. He was alive, and he was bewildered, exhausted, and ashamed.

"No one," Michael said finally, voice soft. "I'm…nothing." It was almost freeing in a sense to admit it, even as he felt even more lost at the admission. He had no purpose, nothing to work for. What was he supposed to do?

"What happened back there?" Ernie's jaw had set with determination. "That's – I've never heard of anything like that happening before. Were you possessing Wayne before? Was that why he's been acting so weird lately?"

He didn't have to explain himself to these children. He should just erase their memories and be done with it, leaving them and this place behind. He didn't know where he'd go, but it would be somewhere he could be—

Not alone. No.

Shivering slightly, Michael forced back the memories of utter isolation in the Cage. Lucifer had been very poor company indeed after a few centuries, and Michael had been unused to not hearing his siblings constantly talking, subsequently withdrawing more into himself as time passed.

"I don't owe you an explanation," Michael said neutrally.

"Don't you?" Ernie insisted, his stance and voice reminding Michael of someone else he'd faced an eternity ago. "You're in our friend. We deserve to know what happened to him."

"I was him," Michael said resignedly, seeing that Ernie wasn't going to let this go until he had answers. "Wayne is…me. Another facet of myself. One I can't return to."

"You said you're Michael," Justin spoke finally, frowning. "And you said you're not human. My family – we're not very religious – but I did learn something about the Bible. I know…Michael was an angel in it."

He had been the first, the one his Father had entrusted the safety of his siblings to. And he had failed. "Not anymore," he said wearily, looking away. "That's not who I am."

Justin inhaled sharply. "But you were? You were him. Michael, I mean. The – the archangel."

"That's someone important, I take it?" Ernie asked, glancing back at Justin.

"I don't know much," Justin said. "Just…Michael's big. Always has been."

"Not anymore," Michael repeated, mild irritation creeping into his tone. Forcing his tone to that of utter neutrality, he said, "Are you done appeasing your curiosity?"

"You can't bring Wayne back?" Justin asked.

"As I said before." Michael closed his eyes, feeling out this body of his. It startled him that it felt so familiar, like a simple extension of his Grace, not something he had crammed himself into. That it hadn't burnt to ashes in the reacquisition of his Grace was even more surprising.

There was just him in this body. Wayne had been him without his Grace and memories. A shadow of his true self.

It was impossible to go back, even if he were to tear his Grace out and Fall.

"So what now?" There was a faint tremble to Ernie's words. "Are you just going to leave?"

Michael didn't answer, eyes turning to the fire burning low in the mantel. In truth, he had no idea. His first instinct to wipe their memories and flee didn't seem so attractive now, not with the realization that he had no idea what to do. There was no one to talk to – no one to turn to. He was alone, completely and utterly alone, for the first time in his existence.

"Michael?" Justin's voice was soft, hesitant.

Looking back at the two children he had called friends while human, Michael turned his full attention to them for the first time since he'd remembered. There was still fear clinging to them, along with trepidation and confusion, but there was also…worry. For him. And affection of a sort, even though it was clouded by their other emotions.

Surprised, Michael took another second to confirm that he was indeed seeing what he had.

Even with the knowledge that he wasn't Wayne Hopkins, these two children still cared for him. It was…comforting?

They had no reason to care for him, because he wasn't who they had come to know during their time at Hogwarts. But they still did.

Michael's thoughts turned back to another human who had fought so fiercely for humanity's free will and their freedom to choose. He thought about a little brother who had thrown his lot in with the humans after pulling that same human out of the depths of Hell. He thought about another who had finally come back home only to turn everything around on its head.

And all for humanity.

Perhaps he could…stay. Just for now. It wasn't like he had anywhere else to go.

"No," Michael said finally, smiling slightly at the surprised expressions on their faces. "I'll stay."

"Really?" Ernie sounded surprised. "I would've thought you'd go off and do your own thing."

"Not now." Michael felt something resembling peace settle in his chest at this decision. He had a path of sort to follow, even if it was one of his own making.

"Even though you're not human?"

"I can play at being human. I've been one for the last decade." Michael let his posture soften, becoming more human. "It's simple enough."

"But you want to stay?" Justin sounded just slightly disbelieving.

To Michael's own surprise, he found that he really did. Want to stay. This was something resembling a family, and there were no expectations to live up to. He could just…be. "Yes," he answered simply, meeting their eyes with a gentle smile. Unless… "Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, not really," Justin said hastily, shaking his head. "But, er…"

"We do have to tell Hannah and Susan," Ernie said. "They'll know something's up."

"No one else," Michael said, senses turning to the two girls sleeping in their beds. "I don't need the attention."

"Okay." Ernie nodded, something like relief flooding through him. "We can do that in the morning. So long as you're staying. Oh man…" He looked disbelieving now. "One of my best friends isn't human. This is going to take some getting used to."

"You think?" Justin said dryly, a small snort escaping him. He met Michael's eyes again. "We can't call you Michael."

Was he really Michael if he didn't have anything to go with it?

But he wasn't Wayne Hopkins, except in body. And he wasn't anyone else, so Michael it would have to be.

"Wayne is fine," Michael said instead. "It was who I was."

"Okay, great." Ernie nodded again, seemed to realize he was sounding a bit like a broken record, and then added, "I don't think I can sleep now, so how about a game of Exploding Snap? Or wizard chess?"

"I'll take the cards," Michael said. Playing chess reminded him too much of what he had done before, using his own siblings as pawns as players in a grander scheme that turned out to be all wrong.

"I've got Gobstones," Justin said, considering.

Michael glanced at his hands, thought of the strength he now possessed, and immediately pictured holes in the walls. "Cards would be safer," he said, not elaborating despite Justin's perturbed look.

"So safe that our eyebrows catch on fire?" Justin asked, incredulous.

"Definitely safer," Michael said. He could take care of a little singed hair.

Come the morning, Susan and Hannah came into the Common Room to find that Michael, Ernie, and Justin had built a towering stack of Exploding Snap cards, and Justin was standing on Michael's shoulders to carefully place another card on the top of the stack.

"Oh my God." Hannah sounded stunned.

"I didn't even know it was possible to build it that high," Susan marveled. "They always explode."

Michael's lips twitched, and his fingers tightened slightly around Justin's ankles as the other wavered unsteadily. It took virtually no effort for him to suspend the exploding magic in the cards so that the boys could build them up, and he had been getting irritated with continually having to grow back his hair.

Ernie and Justin didn't seem to have noticed Michael's involvement in the cards not exploding, and he wasn't about to let them know either.

"It hasn't exploded yet," Ernie said, hair sticking up in the air from where he had been running it through with his fingers.

"Okay, let me down." Justin bent down until he was crouching on Michael's shoulders.

"How long have you been up?" Susan asked once Justin was standing next to Michael.

"Um…" Ernie squinted at the clock they had in their Common Room. "Since three, I think? Didn't look at the clock when we were running out after Wayne."

The girls turned to Michael, whose expression didn't change.

"Did you have trouble sleeping again?" Susan asked worriedly.

"You could say that." Michael shrugged, picked up a few different Exploding Snap cards, and then flicked them to the top of the pile, where they arranged themselves on top of the already standing cards.

"Seriously, no fair," Ernie complained.

Hannah stared. "How did you do that?"

Justin opened his mouth, but he was cut off from saying anything by the startled exclamations coming from other Hufflepuffs who were getting out of bed. They all came to crowd around the Exploding Snap tower, marveling at the structure and how it managed to stay intact.

"That's really something," Zacharias said.

Michael gave him a sidelong look, unable to stop himself from seeing the resemblance between Zacharias and Zachariah. But Zacharias was still a child, and Zachariah had died before Michael had fallen into the Cage. "Thank you," he said out loud. "Ernie and Justin did most of the work," he added.

"Yeah, and we're going outside right now," Ernie said. "Got to enjoy that sunshine."

Zacharias gave him a skeptical look. "It's raining."

Ernie turned to look at the windows, affecting a surprised look. "So it is. Guess we'll just head to the library then. Coming?" he asked Hannah and Susan.

Michael deliberately didn't meet their eyes, stepping back from the tower of Exploding Snap cards.

"Sure," Hannah said, confusion radiating from her.

Before they left, Michael removed the enchantment on the cards that would make them explode without his supervision. That many cards would cause a rather devastating explosion, and he was in no mood to deal with the gruesome results.

They received some strange stares while walking through the corridors, and until Justin cursed and muttered something about still being in nightclothes that Michael realized what was wrong.

Well…it wasn't like they had classes.

Once they were in the library and well away from any prying eyes, Michael made certain they wouldn't be interrupted, putting his back to a bookshelf.

"So what's going on?" Susan looked between them, bemused. "What did you mean when you went running out after Wayne?"

"I woke them up," Michael said evenly, arms folded across his chest. He didn't look at any of them.

"He wasn't exactly being quiet," Justin said dryly. "And then he went off into the Forbidden Forest."

"The Forbidden Forest?" the girls' voices went up several octaves, then probably shushed when they realized they were in a library and Madame Pince could come around to shoo them out.

"No one heard you," Michael told them, trying to sound reassuring. He thought he succeeded.

"She has the ears of a bat," Susan hissed. "We're going to be kicked out – I just know it—"

"She won't hear us if I don't want her to," Michael repeated, patient. "It's fine, Susan."

"What do you mean if you don't want her to? What did you do, Wayne?"

"I didn't do anything."

"Forget it," Ernie interrupted whatever Susan was going to say next. "You're awful at this."

No one had ever said Michael was good at delivering news. That had been Gabriel's job, and after Gabriel had disappeared, he had left that to his subordinates.

"Hannah, Susan, meet Michael," Ernie said, gesturing to Michael with a dramatic flourish. "He touched this bloody tree in the middle of the Forbidden Forest and then zapped us back here and looked like an Inferi."

"I would've said robot," Justin said.

Ernie frowned. "Is this another of your Muggle things?"

"That you don't know what robots are is just sad, Ernie."

"Hold up," Susan interrupted, sounding annoyed, "what the bloody hell do you mean Michael? That's Wayne."

"If you were going to play a prank, at least make it a good one," Hannah said, huffing. "The only thing remotely different about him is that he looks like he's had a good night's sleep for once."

They all looked at Michael as if to check this statement.

"When did that happen?" Justin squinted at him. "You were still looking all peaky some hours ago."

Michael lifted one shoulder in a shrug. "It wasn't healthy."

"Why do you think we were asking if you were all right?" Hannah was frowning. "You're acting oddly."

"Ernie was right," Michael said, taking pity on the boy. "My name is Michael. I was the boy you knew as Wayne, but I reclaimed myself."

Susan and Hannah stared at him, sheer disbelief and incredulity radiating from them.

"I didn't think you'd do something like this," Susan said finally, tone flat. "This isn't funny, Wayne."

"I don't joke." Michael tilted his head, letting a bland smile cross his face. The humans shivered reflexively at the sight. "It was never in my nature. I am Michael, and it's because we were friends that I wanted to tell you. Whether or not you believe me is of no consequence."

"Let's put it like this," Justin jumped in hastily, eyes flicking between Michael and the girls. "We do magic, which a lot of us thought was just fairy tales. Is it really so farfetched to think that this is also possible?"

"Maybe if you had a bit more of an explanation," Hannah said, giving Susan a look. "You can't expect us to just believe it like that. It doesn't make sense. Even magic has rules."

"I don't have one myself," Michael said. Not one he was willing to give to these children. "But I was drawn to the forest from the beginning. It wasn't until last night that I actually went." He tilted his head up, eyes gleaming with light. "Now I know why I couldn't sleep as a human."

"Oh bloody hell," Susan breathed, eyes wide at the sight. "How did you do that?"

Michael let the light fade, eyes back to brown. "Do you think this is who I truly am? This is just a vessel; you couldn't comprehend my true form."

"You sound even stuffier than Malfoy when you speak like that," Ernie informed him.

"Just a bit," Susan agreed. Sobering, she added, "I'm still not entirely sold on this, but you seem pretty serious about it. I'll play along for now."

Hannah bit her lip, seemingly torn. She was more inclined than Susan to believe Michael, but even she had some trouble letting go of her preconceived notions of what was possible.

Unlike Ernie and Justin, they hadn't been there to see what had happened, and Michael had no desire to further show off his abilities to persuade them.

Sensing the conversation was finished, Michael undid his earlier work so that they could be heard and seen by others. No sooner had he done so did Malfoy find them, face pale and eyes wide.

"Did you hear?" Malfoy demanded immediately, not even bothering to see who else was standing with Michael. "Potter's in the Hospital Wing. He apparently went after the Philosopher's Stone and faced down You-Know-Who!"

"What?" Justin, Ernie, Susan, and Hannah asked at the same time.

"It's a load of codswallop if you ask me," Malfoy went on. "How is that even possible? There's no way a Philosopher's Stone would be in Hogwarts! And—" He broke off, blinking owlishly at them. "Why are you all in nightclothes?"

Recovering admirably quickly, Ernie flipped his head back. "It's the new fashion."

"Extremely comfortable," Susan added, smiling innocently.

Michael was silent a beat too long before he realized Malfoy was staring at him, apparently expecting him to end this insanity.

"So, a Philosopher's Stone?" he tried, dredging up his more recent memories as Wayne to act somewhat human. "What's going on?"

Relieved at some normality, Malfoy continued talking. Michael only listened with half an ear, most of his attention on the castle and the energy he was seeking out.

He could tell Malfoy didn't believe that Harry Potter had faced down Lord Voldemort, but there was little that could hide from his senses, and the traces an evil spirit left behind were no exception. Lord Voldemort had been inside Hogwarts, but he wasn't any longer. Where he had gone, Michael didn't know, nor did he care to find out.

As Malfoy finished speaking, Michael suggested joining the rest of the school to see what was going on.

"Put some clothes on first," Malfoy said. "I refuse to be seen with you wearing that."

Michael saw absolutely nothing wrong with his pinstriped nightclothes, but apparently the others agreed, pulling him along after an awkward moment of just tugging at his arms without him moving.

The end of the year banquet later was more enlightening than Michael had expected, if only because of Dumbledore awarding Gryffindor last-minute points so they won the House Cup. Malfoy looked rather crushed at the loss, although the rest of the school seemed vindictively satisfied.

The sounds weren't as overwhelming as they had been before, but Michael still heard—

No.

He was here now, and there was nothing he could do about his past.

Michael had little idea what he should do, though, but for now, he would remain here. It was as good a place as any.

The second chapter isn't going to be as long as this one, I'm sorry to say. I was hoping everything could be bundled up into one, but that wasn't going to be happening.

Please let me know what you thought! The muse thrives on feedback, and I've been excited to share this with you guys.